In the House

Dec 17, 2008 — Sellout crowds have caused New York's Film Forum to extend its run of the new Janus Films restoration of Amarcord for another six days, until December 23. So, New Yorkers, it's not too late to see this “fun-house tour through...

Dec 13, 2006 — Well, it’s not exactly writer’s block, but it’s related. I’ve been trying to get this blog entry posted since Tuesday afternoon, but there’s always something that takes me away from the task at hand. I’m procrastinating, and I know why:...

Nov 28, 2006 — Paris. We landed here yesterday at midday, and after a quick stop at our hotel, executive producer Fumiko Takagi and I headed straight to the offices of TF1 and Canal+ in Issy-les-Moulineaux for meetings. Issy is not what you think...

Jan 11, 1999 — It was quite a surprise to learn that David Lean had not read Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations before he embarked on his film version in 1945. The closeness of the adaptation, the understanding of the characters, make one swear it...

Oct 9, 2025 — Legendary pop duo Sparks—the fifty-plus-year-long project of brothers Ron and Russell Mael—was formed in 1971. Earlier this year, they released their twenty-eighth studio album, MAD!, via Transgressive Records. Their latest release, the EP MADDER!, was released in October.Very few artists...

Jun 19, 2009 — Forty-six years ago, Last Year at Marienbad opened in London. Resnais and Robbe-Grillet came over for the press screening, and I chatted to them in the lobby of the now defunct Cameo-Poly art house on London’s Upper Regent Street. Resnais...

Nov 6, 2006 — The New York Times ran a really nice piece about the Janus box this morning. It started on the front page of the Arts section and jumped to another half page inside. It featured big pictures from M, L'Avventura, Seven...

The writer, director, and producer praises Black Orpheus and Killer of Sheep as his favorite works of Black cinema, talks about the influence of Risky Business on his film House Party, and admires the depth of Bruce Lee’s performance in...

Jan 1, 2022 — Ring in the new year with the French New Wave, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, and a look back at the 1992 Sundance Film Festival.

Oct 28, 2019 — This year’s Tokyo International Film Festival salutes two singular directors, both in their eighties now but still going strong.